Nothing but a shadow
by miss-fiora
Summary: Six months. She went missing for six months and no one knows what happened to her during that time but they can see that something changed, she's not the Sakura they used to know.
1. Chapter 1

**6th July**

Sakura was angry.

Because Kakashi-sensei had left a note on her window telling her he was going to train with Sasuke-kun and that she should take the month off. He hadn't even bothered to find her in person to tell her that! A note! How could he leave just like that?! Even Naruto left this morning with one of the legendary Sannin, Jiraiya-sama! Both of her teammates were off training for the third part of the chûnin exam and she was left behind. Like always.

Her shoulders dropped. It wasn't Kakashi-sensei's fault but hers. It was her who didn't pass the second tour so of course she didn't require any training like her comrades who both passed. It was her fault she was weak. That's what she is after all: powerless, frail, coward, annoying. So it was no surprise she couldn't do anything in the forest of death when faced by Orochimaru. She had been so useless, standing there frozen by fear, if it hadn't been for Gai's team interference who knows what would have happened to Sasuke-kun.

Why did she even thought she could become a kunoichi? All she had was a big forehead, her brain and chakra control. Her shoulders dropped even further. Why was she even placed on a team with the famous copy-nin, the last Uchiha and the Uzumaki? She didn't belong there. Maybe she should quit?

 _ **And throw away all our efforts? Don't even think about it.**_

 _Efforts?_ It wasn't like she did anything until now.

She frowned. What had she done until now apart from studying and trying to please Sasuke-kun? Right. Nothing. That was probably why Kakashi-sensei hadn't bothered to arrange some kind of tutor for her or even an assignment. No, he had just told her to take the month to _rest_. She gritted her teeth. Like she could spend a month doing nothing! She was going to prove Kakashi-sensei wrong, she will train. Even if it was all by herself, it wasn't like there weren't any scroll in the library that couldn't help her.

Smiling, she looked up to the sky. Only to find that it was already dark and glancing right and left, she found that she was alone in the street. Which meant it was way past the time she should have been home, her parents were… She slowed down her pace. Her parents weren't home, like most of the time they were travelling and seeing as they had departed this morning –funny how everyone left this morning- they probably wouldn't be back before the third part of the chûnin exam so it wasn't like there was anyone to tell her what she could or couldn't do.

If only the library was open at this time, she would have gladly went there but it wasn't so she had two options: go home or train. She didn't want to go home. She didn't like being alone. But she didn't really want to train either. Should she go star gazing? Maybe she could pick a book at home and lie down on her roof to read? She shuddered. It was more of a Kakashi-sensei thing to do than her.

She stopped dead in her tracks when she heard a noise. She quickly looked behind her, expecting some drunkard but found no one. Maybe she should just go home.

 _ **Wait, can't you feel it?**_

 _Feel what, Inner? I'm not in-_

She froze. That sound again. Like a metal clashing against another. There couldn't be anyone training at this hour and they weren't even close to the training grounds so that left only one option possible. What should she do if there was really a combat going on? Why no one was coming to check what was going on? Weren't there supposed to be shinobis doing rounds? It was weird, it wasn't normal and her mind was screaming at her to not go see what was going on and just flee from here and alert any person she comes across but she wouldn't do that.

Canceling her chakra the best she could, she jumped on the roof and ran where she could feel two presences. She had promised she wouldn't be weak anymore.

Crunching down on a branch, she looked at the fight that was going on and suppressed a gasp when she saw the faces of the two men. One of them was the proctor of the exam, Hayate Gekkô and the other one was the man who was accompanying Gaara's team. Why were they fighting? What was going on? She winced when the shinobi from Suna delivered a blow to Hayate. It was bad, he was going to die at this rhythm if she didn't do something but what? She was powerless. If a Tokubetsu Jōnin can't win against him, there was no way, she, a genin, could even deliver a blow. She had to alert any shinobi but by the time she found one, it would be too late.

 _Think, Sakura, there has to be a way- Ah!_

There was a way to alert any decent shinobis in the surrounding without moving. She just had to flare her chakra. It was easy. But by doing so, she would give away her position and he would be on her in less than a second.

Another blow. Oh god, Hayate was going to die and it would be her fault for not having done something when she was a witness of the scene. Her conscience will never let her live in peace if she lets him die without even trying to help him. He was already losing so much blood.

Snatching three kunai from her pouch, she exhaled and took a second to calm herself before tossing them and flared her chakra. Now she just had to hope that someone would be alerted by it and would come to see what was going on and as for her, she had to flee. Get away from this place as fast as she could.

A kunai passed right by her head, leaving a small cut on her cheek. Great, just great. The Suna-nin was following her. She flared her chakra a second time, a third time, a fourth time. Why was no one coming!? She riposted by sending two shuriken, hoping to slow him down but he just easily dodged them. She let out a small cry when one of his kunai impaled in her shoulder.

She suddenly found herself paralyzed and dropped on the ground. Her members refused to move. What was happening? Poison?

"Baki-san, it would be wise to return to your room and treat those wounds of yours"

That voice. She knew that voice. Glancing up, she saw the same man who had helped them during the second tour, Yakushi Kabuto.

 _ **So he's with him? What kind of jerk is that, isn't he a shinobi of Konoha!?**_

"Haruno-san, I'm sorry for this inconvenience but don't worry, you will soon fall asleep" He looked at her with this fake smile of his.

"W-Wha.." She couldn't even speak!

"Good night, Haruno-san"

And just like he said, her eyelids closed. She should have just gone look for someone instead of trying to- To what exactly? What had she tried to do there? Play the hero?

What an idiot.

Would Kakashi-sensei be proud of her if he saw her right now? Would he? Because she hadn't abandoned a fellow shinobi behind.

Dying in her own village, how pathetic…

* * *

/

* * *

"What I wouldn't do for some Tonkatsu or even Tempura… Damn, I'm dying for a nice hot meal!"

Iwashi Tatami could only agree with his partner, Tsuzumi Sarugaku, seeing as they were both coming back from a week long mission and hadn't had the opportunity to have a decent meal for the past three days because of some rogue-nin pursuing them. And they couldn't eat now, seeing as they were in the middle of the night and no restaurant was open so all he could do for now was to go home and see if there was anything edible in his kitchen.

He glanced at his partner, to ask him if he had any cup of ramen or anything of the likes in his cupboards because he was sure that the only thing he'll find in his were probably spider webs but stopped short when he saw that Tsuzumi was a good teen feet behind him.

"What's wrong?"

"Huh? Ah, I just felt a pike of chakra… Maybe I'm just-" Tsuzumi stopped mid-sentence and turned his head toward the left area of the village.

Iwashi could feel it too, someone was flaring his chakra and judging by the way he was doing it, it looks like there was trouble. Without further notice, they both dashed off. They were soon joined by Aoba and the tree of them arrived at the place where they found an unconscious Hayate suffering from multiple wounds, the biggest being on his torso.

"The two of you, go report to the Hokage. I'll take him to the hospital" Aoba disappeared with Hayate and they ran off to the Hokage tower.

* * *

/

* * *

 **7th July**

Sakura felt like throwing up as soon as she opened her eyes. By reflexes, she tried to use her hand to shield her vision from the light only to find it bound to the cold hard stone she was currently lying on. In fact, both of her hands and foots were bound. This was not good. Why is she still alive? Where was she?

 _ **No doubt that Kabuto took us with him. For what reasons, I ignore.**_

Sakura closed her eyes and rested her head back on the cold stone. She had to calm down first before trying to decipher what was going. She wouldn't just wait for someone to come save her anymore. She had to get strong, be strong. So why could she feel her tears? Why was she crying?

"Good morning Haruno-san" It was that boy again, with his fake kindness and smile. "Oh, no need to cry. I'm not going to do anything to you. At least, not yet"

What did he meant by that? Was she going to be tortured? Why? It wasn't like she was a high-classed shinobi or possessed any clan secret or anything. She was a mere genin so it wasn't like he was going to get anything from her.

"You're probably wondering why you're here" He moved to the table on the far end right of the room and she felt her inside twist now that she was paying some attention to her surroundings. Oh god, he was going to dissect her insides to display them in some jars next to the ones he already had.

 _Wait, is that a human body opened in two I see over there!?_

She heard him chuckle and quickly turned her head toward him. He was holding a syringe in his hand and seeing the green colored liquid that it contained, she could only assume it wasn't something she was going to enjoy if he ever managed to get that inside of her.

"You see, Orochimaru-sama wanted to take Uchiha-san to make him is vessel but his plans got… delayed"

What did it had to do with her? Why was he telling her this?

"He's not really in a good mood right now so I apologize in his place for not being here right now but don't worry, my skills are more than enough for this"

 _ **Wait, wait, wait! Sakura! You better not let him get anywhere near us with that!**_

She was struggling, trying to free even one hand but it was to no use. "Don't! Don't come near me! Get away!"

She was probably bruising her own skin by now but she didn't care. She didn't care that she was crying and struggling like crazy. She didn't care that she was acting like a child and not like a kunoichi. She didn't care. All she wanted was to get away from here.

The needle came into contact with the inside of her elbow and she froze just as he injected the liquid in her veins.

"I've heard that you had a good chakra control for a genin Haruno-san"

 _What does he-_

She let out a scream as she felt her insides burn.

* * *

/

* * *

 **13th July**

There was a heavy silence in the room as they were all digesting what Hayate, who just woke up after a week of being in the coma, had said.

"Oto and Suna, huh? Who thought they'd make an alliance against Konoha" Shikaku let out a sigh. To know that one of their allies was associating with an enemy against them was something he considered troublesome. Why would Suna do that?

"The third part of the exam start in less than a week, what do we do Hokage-sama?"

"You're going to take his place as the proctor, Genma. As for what to do... Shikaku, I want you to alert every chûnin and jōnin available of the situation and tell them to stay on guard. We're going to continue with the third round as planned, we can't afford to make a fuss about it right now."

Sarutobi Hiruzen glanced out the window. Orochimaru was really taking it too far if he was going to attack Konoha, he had to stop him. Jiraiya and Kakashi had to be informed as well. He'd have to make sure his ex-student don't get his claws on the Uchiha. Itachi wouldn't forgive him if anything happened to his brother.

"What happened to the person who… Hm… kind of saved my live?"

Genma glanced at Hayate, the person who 'kind of saved his life'?

"What do you mean Hayate? You were alone at the place"

"No. Just before I blacked out, someone threw a pair of kunai at Baki and flared his chakra, thus distracting him. Otherwise, the Suna-nin would have made sure that I wasn't breathing anymore"

The Nara frowned, it really was starting to become too troublesome.

* * *

/

* * *

How long had it been? How many days have passed since she was brought here? Why was no one coming? Was this place going to be her grave? Why was he keeping her alive? Was she some sort of test subject? That had to be it. He was making his experiences on her. She couldn't see any other reason for him to keep doing that.

"I must say I'm surprised Haruno-san. I'd never thought you'd survive this far"

 _ **Hey Sakura, hold on.**_

 _Why… Why are they doing this?_

"Shall we test my newest product?"

She wanted to scream, shake her head, tell him to get away from her but all she could do was stare as he injected yet another substance in her veins.

And the pain began again.

* * *

/

* * *

He dodged yet another attack and stared at his student. He certainly had improved in a month of time but would he be able to compete against that boy from Suna? Just as he was going to return the blow, he felt something coming their way. Holding out a hand to tell Sasuke to stop, he looked up just as a hawk appeared in the sky. He frowned, for Konoha to contact him now must mean that something serious was going on.

Reaching for the small paper attached to one of the bird's claw, he opened it and his frown deepened even more.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at the look on Kakashi's face. "What is it?"

"Nothing for you to worry about. Let's continue, there's only two days left before the exam"

Who would deliver him a letter? His lov- Sasuke shuddered. There was no way that Kakashi-sensei had a girlfriend or anything of the likes. It was simply impossible.

It had to be some sort of report, he concluded as he threw another punch.

* * *

/

* * *

 **31st July**

Naruto was sulking. He was back since yesterday but he had yet to see any traces of his pink-haired teammate. Sakura was nowhere! Even that Sasuke-teme wasn't back from his training with Kaka-sensei. Well, it wasn't really a surprise considering the fact that he was with the copy-nin and the jōnin had always been late to their meetings so it was kind of normal for him.

His shoulders dropped as he looked around the crowd. The match was about to begin and still no sign of any of them.

" _Oh well, don't worry about it. I'm sure she decided to take this month to travel with her parents, she'll be back before the end of the exam"_

That was what Ino had said but would she really make it back before his match against the Hyūga?

"Yo, Naruto! You're ready?" He turned around to see Kiba and Akamaru along with Chôji and Shikamaru.

He grinned "Of course! I haven't trained with the perv-sage for nothing!"

Maybe Kaka-sensei's tardiness was also rubbing on Sakura-chan.

* * *

/

* * *

 **2nd August**

Something wasn't right. It was itching at the back of his mind but he couldn't remember what. The attack was over, lives were lost and buildings were destroyed but it had done less damage than he originally thought. It was surprising that Orochimaru had retreated so quickly. Maybe it was because he had seen there were no chances for him to win against the Hokage and Jiraiya-sama?

Probably.

He muffled a yawn as he made his way to the headquarters without glancing up from his book but he couldn't concentrate on it. He was forgetting something, something important.

"Kakashi"

He looked up at Asuma and nodded. He didn't like the look on his face. "What's up?"

He slowly put his book back in the pocket. He had a feeling he wasn't going to like whatever the man in front of him was going to tell him.

"Ino's been panicking since yesterday because she still has no news of Sakura and I just saw the list of people that are listed as dead. Haruno Mebuki and Haruno Kizashi are on it. Your student is currently listed as missing"

 _Sakura_.

He had forgotten about Sakura.

* * *

/

* * *

The Hokage pinched the bridge of his nose as he looked at the scroll in front of him. He already had his hands full with Orochimaru and his obsession over the Uchiha then there was the matter with Haruno Sakura- How could have no one noticed that she's been missing for a _month_ – and now there was Akatsuki.

Jiraiya spoke up for the first time since entering the office "We can't afford to have Naruto running across the world in search for his teammate, not with the Akatsuki after him. The only solution is to tell him that she's dead and in the meantime, send out a team to search for her"

The third dropped the scroll and stood up, turning his back on his office and looking out of the window. Staring at Konoha below him, he let out a small sigh inwardly at the thought of having to tell Naruto and Sasuke about the death of their friend.

He looked behind his shoulder at his student who was sitting in the chair in front of his desk. "I have another favor to ask of you"

Jiraiya replied without missing a beat "I'm not taking your place"

Of course, they had already talked about it multiples times so his answer was expected, the toad-sage preferred to have his freedom and not be stuck doing paperwork all day long.

Sarutobi shook his head before facing him entirely. "I know, that's why I want you to find Tsunade. Take Naruto with you."

* * *

/

* * *

Sasuke stayed silent, Naruto threw a fit saying it was impossible that Sakura was dead. Kakashi stood there, with a hand on Naruto's shoulder.

* * *

/

* * *

She didn't move, she didn't scream. She just stared lifelessly at the wall.

"You're not fun Sakura-chan"

It was Orochimaru.

She closed her eyes, waiting for the pain to begin again but when nothing came, she opened them only to find herself staring into yellow ones.

"I must say I'm surprised, you're the first subject to survive so far. But now… Let's try something different, shall we?"

* * *

/

* * *

A month later, Tsunade was proclaimed as the new Hokage.

Three months after that, Jiraiya took Naruto and Sasuke with him for a long journey.

Two weeks after that, Genma found Sakura's body.

* * *

* **Tonkatsu** , breaded and deep-fried pork cutlet, dates to the late 19th Century when Japan threw open its doors to Western influence. But never mind the European origin: the ingredients and attention to detail are thoroughly Japanese. Tonkatsu – especially when it's _kuro-buta_ (Berkshire pork) from Kagoshima – is melt-in-your-mouth tender, served with a side of miso soup and a mountain of shredded cabbage.

 ***Tempura** : Light and fluffy tempura is Japan's contribution to the world of deep-fried foods (though it likely originated with Portuguese traders). The batter-coated seafood and vegetables are traditionally fried in sesame oil and served with either a tiny pool of salt or a dish of soy sauce-flavoured broth spiked with grated radish for dipping.


	2. Chapter 2

She glanced at her hands. Red. Red was all she saw around her. How…? She didn't understand, she was tied not even a minute ago and the next thing she knows, she's up and free. But the people around her are all dead. Did she do this? Impossible. She couldn't have done something like this. It wasn't her. Sakura had never killed anyone. She… She couldn't have-

"You surpass my expectations Sakura-chan"

She didn't look away from her hands. They were still red. _Oh god, it was a nightmare, it had to be-_ But it wasn't. There were corpses lying around her. It was her doing. And Orochimaru was enjoying it all.

/Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ/

 **16th January**

"Genma?" He stopped on the same branch as his partner and glanced down, looking for what had caught his teammate's attention and froze at the sight. It was… ugly to say at least. Three bodies were on the ground, one of them missing a head and all lying in their own blood but what made him froze was the sight of the masks they were wearing. Kirigakure's ANBU. He frowned, trying to decipher as to why they were in the country of Fire. Unless there was one of their missing-nin roaming around, they had no business on their lands.

Small traces of blood going northwest caught his attention and he shared a glance with his teammate before they both stormed off in the direction. There was a chance that the responsible was still around since it looked like he was injured and for him to manage to kill three ANBU alone was an exploit, meaning that he must be quite strong.

But what they stumbled across wasn't a missing-nin, it wasn't even a shinobi.

It was a little girl.

With _pink_ hair.

Genma would have made a comment about it if it wasn't for the state she was in: a bloody mess. He couldn't even see a single square of skin that wasn't covered by blood. He didn't know what happened but there was clearly something that didn't add up. What was she doing here in such a state and why there were three Kiri's ANBU lying dead some meters away from said girl who herself was in such a state that he could only assume she was dead.

A theory suddenly went through his head and he nearly snorted. Ridiculous. Impossible. It couldn't be.

"She's alive" He snapped out of his thoughts when he heard his partner's voice. "We should get her back to Konoha" He watched as Boar carefully took the body in his arm before turning toward him "Dispose of the bodies and catch up" With that, he was gone.

The senbon user shook his head. Who would have thought that they would, one day, find Kakashi's missing -supposed dead- student?

/Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ/

 **4th March**

Sakura wakes up to the steady sound of the monitor. There was an IV drip in her arm. Two to be precise. Still faking her sleep, she checks her surroundings and when she's sure there's no one around, she slowly opens her eyes to find herself in a completely bare room. And it was so white and that smell, the smell of antiseptic and oh god, was she back in the laboratory? _Nononono- She was out, she had gotten out thanks to-_

Feeling the panic rise, she yanked the needles out of her arm (she couldn't stand the sight of needles anymore) and stood up, or at least, tried to stand up but her body refused to move. By now, the monitor's beep wasn't as regular as when she had woken up and it was going to alert someone at some point. Finding the electrodes stuck on her chest, she easily got rid of them too and the sound immediately stopped.

Just as when she thought that she could keep up, her legs gave up and she found herself sprawled out on the floor. What was happening to her!? Why couldn't she move? What did Orochimaru do to her this time?

The window was right there.

 _Out_. _She had to get out._

Using her arms, she lifted herself to the window, now all she had to do was open it.

The door opened. She froze.

"Oh my! You shouldn't be up so soon miss Haruno!"

Bewildered, Sakura turned her head to see an old lady with white hair in which looked to be like a nurse uniform. "My, my, let's get you back to the bed and then I'll go alert Tsunade-sama"

Tsunade…same? As in… The legendary sannin?

As soon as the nurse left after making sure Sakura would stay in bed, the pink haired kunoichi realized three things: She wasn't in the laboratory, she had gotten out and she was in a hospital. Turning her head toward the window, she froze.

Clenching her fists, she let out a shaky breath. She was in Konoha. She was back. So why was she like this? _Because they hadn't looked for her, because they had left her, because no one cared about little Sakura, because she didn't matter, because-_

/Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ/

Tsunade's hand twitched. First, she had been forced to pass the night on some documents. Second : Her precious sake had been hidden by Shizune because 'she spent too much time drinking and there was so much paperwork pilling up' or something along those lines and just when she thought that she was going to flee to a nearby bar because she had a _fcking_ headache and she absolutely needed something to relieve her stress before she murdered someone, she had been noticed of Haruno Sakura. That girl had finally woken up after two months and it was high time she got some answers and maybe Orochimaru's hideout localization.

So of course she had directly gone to the hospital to check on her and interrogate her but when she found the room empty and the window open, she nearly punched the wall beside her.

Her hand twitched again.

" _That brat…."_

Shizune nervously backed away from the blond woman. It was a miracle she hadn't already destroyed something.

"FIND HER!"

And of course, no one questioned the hole in the wall. After all, they had seen their Hokage pass in a fury and whoever was on the receiving end of her anger…. They wished him luck.

/Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ/

 _Another injection. Another seal. Pain. Again and again._

" _Fufufufu! Who'd have thought that you'd be so… surprising! All those skills! A shame they never recognized the potential in you."_

 _She didn't look at him, too focused on the body in front of her. She had just came back to her senses minutes ago but unlike the previous times, she remembered what she had done. She had killed that boy - No, she had tortured him for hours before he died. He was younger than her, probably around six and she had… She…_

 _Monster_. That's what she had become. That's what Orochimaru had turned her into.

She didn't dare go back to her parents. She didn't have the right to go back to them after all she had done and if they were to find it out… She didn't know how they would react. She didn't want them to be afraid of her.

Digging her nails even more in her arm, she stared at the nocturne view of Konoha below her. Perched on the top of the mountain, she could take in the whole view. The village was actually busing with life, some were out with their family, others drinking in a bar with some friends, children playing and running in the streets and Sakura realized that she wouldn't fit in the image, not anymore. She should leave. Leave Konoha.

Clenching her teeth, she stood up on her shaky legs -how long was she out for her body to be like _that_ \- and would have fallen if it wasn't for a hand that caught her.

"Careful here"

Immediately yanking herself free from his grip, she took a step back and looked at the man in front of her. He looked vaguely familiar with his brown hair and that senbon sticking out of his mouth, she must have already seen him around Konoha a few times.

"No need to look so defensive, I'm only here to take you back to the hospital."

Seeing as the girl was still on the defensive, he sighed. "Look, the Hokage is beyond pissed and it would be best if you just came with me. It's not like you have any other choice"

Taking a step forward, he surveyed her carefully. For someone who had just woken up after being in the coma, her muscles should be pretty weak but if she had managed to not only move but even make it on top of the mountain…. It was impressing.

"Do I really have to go?"

He blinked.

"What?"

Sakura shook her head. "Nothing. Can you take me to the Hokage tower instead? I'm… not really fond of hospitals"

Genma didn't even have to think about it for more than a second before grabbing her and transporting them both to the tower. It's not like he was fan of hospitals himself.

/Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ/

Another minute passed by.

Genma wondered for a moment why he was still here. It was nearly nine in the evening and he had a somewhere to be. He glanced back to the two females. He could have sworn that Tsunade was ready to yell when they had entered the office but as soon as she had looked at the pink haired genin, she somewhat calmed down. Which was weird.

Then she had just stared at her for five minutes without saying anything. Maybe she had been testing Sakura? Who knows, but said girl had not flinched nor broke eye contact with the blonde woman.

When the Hokage asked her to recall everything from the beginning 'till now to, the younger one answered by telling how she had been going home when she heard some noise and found out Hayate and Baki fighting, how Kabuto had chased her, when she woke up in something that looked like a laboratory and Orochimaru administering her something and then she had stopped. She said she didn't remember anything else.

Tsunade finally spoke up "Then we will have a Yamanaka go through your memories"

Sakura tensed for a split second, which didn't went unnoticed. "I would rather they didn't"

"And why is that?"

"I… just don't want them poking around my mind"

Crossing her arms, the Hokage frowned "Noncooperation can be considered as treason as it would mean you have something to hide from us. Now, you either cooperate or I'll let T&I deal with you ; either way, whatever you're hiding or do not want us to see… We will find it"

Genma frowned when the pink haired girl didn't respond. Saying that she didn't remember about anything else and then refusing them to look at her memories…

"Very well, T&I is it then"

/Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ/

Yamanaka Inoichi had expected some criminal from another nation when he opened the door, not Haruno Sakura, the best friend of his own daughter, who was supposed to be dead.

Looking at Genma, then at the Hokage, he opened his mouth before closing it.

What was she doing here?

"Inoichi, just proceed with it before she wakes up"

 _Ask questions after._

Reluctantly, he placed his fingers on her temples and closed his eyes.

 _Black. Black. And black._

 _He couldn't see anything else. It wasn't normal. He should have access to her whole mind so why couldn't he see anything?_

" _Inoichi-san"_

 _He turned around._

" _Sakura-"_

" _It would be best if you left this place"_

" _Why?"_

" _Leave. Inoichi-san, this is my last warning"_

 _He took a step toward her, but as soon as he did so, something caught his foot. Then his hands. He still couldn't see anyting._

 _Looking up, Sakura was now standing right in front of him. Something was tied around his neck._

" _What's going on Sakura?"_

 _She placed her hand on his forehead and smiled before pushing him._

The Yamanaka gasped as he came back to his own body. What was _that_?

"Inoichi-san?"

He wiped his head and faced Genma who was handing him some tissue. He took them and gave a questioning look to the senbon user to which he answered by pointing to his nose.

 _Oh._

He was bleeding. That… never happened before.

"What happened?" Tsunade was standing at his right with a glowing hand, ready to heal him and Inoichi lowered his hand which was holding the tissue to let check.

"I couldn't access to her mind"

"What do you mean?"

"I was… forced out by Sakura"

This wasn't what she had been expecting. Finishing with Inoichi, she turned her eyes toward Kakashi's student. What did Orochimaru do to her?

Passing a hand through her hair, she thought about what she should do. She couldn't let the little Haruno on her own, who knows what she might do but the problem was that it's not like she could keep her in hospital and with her parents gone… And Hatake was out on a long-term mission. If only-

She whipped her head toward the other occupant of the room.

 _Perfect._

Genma didn't like the look his Hokage was giving him.

/Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ/

And he was right not to. Now he was stuck _babysitting_ that kid. Like he hadn't anything better to do. And it's not like it was _his_ kid to begin with, it was Kakashi's but he was on a mission and there was no one else for this and since he ' _needed some time off from missions to let his shoulder heal'_ and also he _'can think of it as a C-rank and he's going to get paid'._ His shoulder was _fine_!

He sighed, suddenly tired, as he glanced back at the kunoichi- No, _kid_ on his bed and resigned himself for sleeping on the couch for the night.

Joy.

* * *

 **Wow! I didn't expect so many reviews, favs and follows! Thanks a lot guys! And sorry for the wait.**

 **431101134 : Thanks a lot! I'm honored that this story gripped your interest so much that you even read the same chapter twice! Hope to see you around this time too!**

 **AltenativeFutureFan27 : Aha, the title is kind of confusing, maybe I'll change it in the future or try to give it a meaning or... Oh well, I'll find a way.**

 **Naomipy : Thanks! Here's the chapter!**

 **LyrahVL : Ah well, you'll have to wait to find out more, for now, it's only the beginning so hope you're going to enjoy the journey! And I know right but well, we have to admit that nobody really cared much about her since she was seen as weak and 'fangirl' and since her parents weren't even home...**

 **Circa : In that case, I'm honored to have gripped your interest my dear! Like said in the previous answer, Sakura was, in the beginning at least, a person you wouldn't really pay attention to.**

 **theselfproclaimedgreatest7 : Here you go buddy! But you'll have to wait a little bit more to know what really happened and how it will evolve.**

 **'Till next time my dear readers!**


End file.
